


Adrift

by Destiny_Of_A_Dragon



Series: Work In Progress [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Albus Dumbledore Bashing, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Anal Sex, Angst, Attempt at Humor, Blow Jobs, Bottom Harry Potter, Character Study, Confused Tom Riddle, Dark Harry Potter, Demon Harry Potter, Demon Summoning, Developing Relationship, Dubiously Consensual Blow Jobs, Emotionally Constipated Tom Riddle, Fluff and Humor, Graphic Description, Hurt/Comfort, Immortality, M/M, Masochism, Master of Death Harry Potter, Murder, Needy Harry, POV Tom Riddle, Period-Typical Homophobia, Power Bottom Harry Potter, Riding, Rituals, Sadism, Soul Bond, Top Tom Riddle, Torture, Touch-Starved, Touch-Starved Harry Potter, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-12
Updated: 2020-05-07
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:00:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23612686
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Destiny_Of_A_Dragon/pseuds/Destiny_Of_A_Dragon
Summary: Harry is bored of the Underworld, so when someone summons a demon after nearly a hundred years, he's the first to answer. Tom Riddle only wanted power and immortality, not an adrift demon following him everywhere.———‘Work In Progress’ series: Updates to any in this series will likely be sporadic and take a long time.
Relationships: Harry Potter/Tom Riddle | Voldemort
Series: Work In Progress [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1827226
Comments: 41
Kudos: 623
Collections: Corona Challenge





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> **Prompt:**
> 
> Harry is bored of the Underworld, so when someone summons a demon after nearly a hundred years, he's the first to answer. Tom Riddle only wanted power and immortality, not an adrift demon following him everywhere.

Tom has been looking for immortality for ages.

He’s never been satisfied with the knowledge that life could end so easily. Everyone dies, and has their life cut off, and everything they could have done just doesn’t happen. 

He’d known this ever since he was a little kid and strung up a rabbit to die in the rafters of his orphanage. He’d known this ever since the first bombings that rained down upon them. He’d known this ever since he’d left the bomb shelters and seen craters everywhere, bodies littering the floor around them.

They were strewn around, forgotten, and left to rot until they were carted off to someplace else, someplace Tom didn’t care to learn about. Death was so… ungraceful. It was so annoying, so stupid, and it was something Tom didn’t want.

He hated that he could die at any moment, that his body was so fragile. He didn’t want his legacy to end before it even began. So, so many plans he had, and he needed to fulfill them. Tom couldn’t die. It was unacceptable.

That’s how it began. Why he started staying up all night looking through forbidden books, why he dared to traverse Knockturn alley, why he snuck out to the library whenever he could. It was why he demanded access to all of his followers' family library’s.

Hogwarts didn’t help him at all, not even the forbidden section. He needed books that wouldn’t dare be shown in the day, books hidden in darkness, and forever banned by everyone. The darkest of all magick’s known. And his followers were perfect for that. Most, if not all, of them came from dark families.

He researched for so, so long to find a way. But it was so…  _ hard _ . There was barely any information about this type of thing, and any that did exist was practically incomplete and unusable. He couldn’t risk using something that he didn’t understand for fear of cutting his life short by trying to extend it.

The only thing he’d found that was even remotely useful was Horcruxes. However, they were very dangerous from what he understood. They’d literally be taking a chunk of his soul out, and there was just no way that wouldn’t have some serious consequences. It was an option, sure, but it was also his last resort. If there was literally  _ anything _ he could do instead, he wouldn’t take the chance of Horcruxes.

It was as he was searching through Malfoy manor that he finally found something that might just work.  _ Demons _ . According to the book, there were lots and lots of demons one could summon. Minor demons tended to grant smaller wishes, such as revenge against a specific person, or the love and adoration of one person. Medium demons granted things a little larger. Such as swaying the minds of a few hundred people, or perhaps unleashing a deadly curse or plague.

But the major demons? Those were the heavy hitters. They could grant so much power, and could easily command the respect of thousands. They could give Tom exactly what he wanted. The only problem was most didn’t respond.

Minor demons responded quite a lot, medium less so, but major demons almost never. Not to mention the fact that no one had tried such a thing in several centuries. Abraxas, someone who was usually quite ready to delve into dark magic with him, had even balked at the book when Tom picked it up.

“Uh… I don’t know about that one. That’s some of the darkest magic that exists. It’s not even really dark magic, it’s  _ black _ magic. Even my father wouldn’t dare mess with such things, and you know how he is. I… don’t think anyone’s tried in centuries. And you probably shouldn’t either, my Lord.”

Tom, however, wasn’t swayed. He was ready to do this, or die trying. He shivered to himself. Okay, maybe not die, he didn’t want to die, but he was willing to take as much pain as needed.

Preparations took an entire school year, and then a little bit of the summer. He couldn’t take many risks with this. The book said demons were likely to fight back against their summoner at first. The only cases where this didn’t happen was when the summoner was actually more powerful than the demon, or they simply didn’t want to bother with them at all. They also demanded a sacrifice in return. Tom was unsure what they might demand, but he has a lot of things ready just in case.

There was one specific demon he was trying to summon, and this one definitely required as much preparation as possible. He was simply called ‘The Master’. ‘The Master’ was a demon who barely anyone even knew about. The only reason he was recorded in this book was because someone had been trying to summon a minor demon and had their ritual hijacked by this major demon.

According to Abraxas’ great-great-great grandfather, the one who had attempted said ritual, it was the most power he’d ever felt in his entire life, and he’d also managed to summon one of the strongest major demons, so that was saying a lot. After that, he’d done everything he could to summon ‘The Master’ again, and created a very specialized ritual for him only. Most rituals for demons had a lot in common, but this one was very different from them all.

It was only by accident that Tom had even found this information in the first place. The notes had been written on a loose sheet of parchment and stuffed in-between the pages, detailing everything about ‘The Master’. The parchment had only fallen out after the third look through the book. This demon, Tom decided, was the one he was going to summon. It was the only one he’d found that had the possibility of granting him immortality.

The ritual itself was very complex. First of all, the circle of runes. It required a large pentagram, surrounded on each of its points with a smaller hexagram circle. The hexagrams have very specific patterns as well, not just a traditional one. Each triangle created by the hexagrams had to have a circle cut in half by a line inside of it. And then there were hundreds of runes to place perfectly inside of the empty space of the pentagram, all tailored to fit exactly what Tom was summoning ‘The Master’ for. Finally, it was all encased inside a perfect circle that ran over the edges of the hexagrams. And, of course, it had to all be done in his own blood. He’d needed to drain a lot from himself over the course of seven months into some preserving jars to get enough.

The next part was the candles. Each one had to have a wick of exactly seven inches tall and once inch thick. Finding candles exactly that size, made of the hardened tree sap of the extinct elder trees, was almost impossible. They were placed on an extravagant golden stand, and then each one was set perfectly in the center of each hexagram.

The herbs and salts required weren’t nearly as hard to get, though he’d nearly had to beg Abraxas to get access to the ritual salts locked in the basement. He seemed very nervous about what Tom was attempting, especially on such a demon as ‘The Master’.

Several different salts had to be placed every specifically. A thick pink salt, almost a completely raw form of it, harvested from the Himalayas had to be laid along the outermost circle. Koshering salt, flaky and coarse, had to be dissolved into the blood that painted the markings inside the outer circle. Finally, Celtic sea salt, a grey salt that was slightly chunky and looked like it could fall apart at any moment, had to be put inside of the base of the candle holders, around the wax of the candle until it was almost spilling over.

Finally, the very last step of preparing. Spreading the herbs. Ground up pennyroyal had to be smudged into the ground around the circle. Sprigs of rosemary had to be placed neatly at the base of each candle, but not on the candle holder like the salt was. Sage had to be ripped up and a single leaf placed on each corner of the inner pentagram, not touching the hexagrams. Basil had to be thrown over the entire thing, left to land randomly.

There was one more herb, but that one had to be done during the actual ritual itself. Tom sat back on his knees, taking a deep breath. His heart was beating very fast, but this was the one time he didn’t deny being nervous. Anyone would be like this when attempting to someone a demon.

Another quick breath, and he stood up to light the candles. As soon as they were all lit, the fire turned a bright green, signaling that the ritual had started. He hurried back to his original spot, kneeling formally with his back straight. The last herb, apple blossoms, was held up to his face. He breathed out, spreading them across the ritual surface. The flames burned brighter.

“Oh ye old one, answer thy call. Bring what I seek. The Master!” He shouted in Latin.

In an instant, the atmosphere changed. The room darkened heavily, and black fog gathered above the ritual. Sparks of green were appearing everywhere, crackling with magic. He watched with wide eyes as the ritual circle suddenly  _ lifted _ from the ground. The pentagram began twisting until it was completely vertical facing him. The hexagrams were spinning wildly in a circle, twisting around the pentagram. The outermost circle was rotating slowly around it in a different direction. All of his blood began to glow bright white as the pressure of magic increased tenfold.

He could feel as his magic was drained rapidly as the ritual worked. It was taking so much from him, Tom honestly wasn’t sure if he could give much more. Just as he reached his limit a lightning bolt abruptly struck the ritual, appearing from the fog. A deafening crack echoed, and everything got so bright, Tom couldn’t see anymore.

When it finally died down, Tom’s breath caught and he opened his eyes quickly. There was a person standing there, clothed in long black robes with a large hood over their head. The entire ritual, everything from it, was just…  _ gone _ . The person didn’t move for many moments, until suddenly they reached up and pulled their hood down.

It revealed someone who didn’t look much older than Tom. His hair was messy beyond belief, yet long enough it didn’t actually stand up too much, and so black it seemed to suck in light. His skin was very pale, though not quite white, and looked very smooth with no blemishes. The man glanced at Tom, revealing his bright green eyes, so bright Tom swore they glowed.

“Tom Riddle… You wish for immortality?” His voice was deep, and low, yet so smooth like silk. Tom slowly nodded, eyes not once leaving the face of the other. “I can give you what you want. Approach me.”

Slowly, he stood up, and came closer to the man as confidently as he could in the presence of a demon. He stopped a couple feet away, only for his eyes to widen as the demon reached out and yanked him closer. Tom blinked in surprise when he had to look down to meet his eyes. His presence had been so large Tom hadn’t realized that he was shorter than himself.

The demon placed his hands on either side of Tom’s head, two of his fingers on each of his temples, and brought their foreheads to meet. Tom didn’t notice anything at first, but he slowly became more and more aware of a tugging feeling. It was like something was pulling on his entire being. It started yanking harder and harder, and Tom started to feel scared.

Demons were supposed to attack first, weren’t they? He’d been so focused on his success, he’d forgotten! He tried to pull away, eyes opening from when they’d unconsciously closed. The hands on his head merely held on tighter, and didn’t let him move.

He quickly began shoving at the shoulders of the demon, twisting his head side to side as he desperately tried to get out of his grip. He thrashed harder as it escalated into pain, something pulling inside of him. Abruptly, it felt like something was tied around him, and a feeling of heaviness laid on top of him so fast his shoulders sagged.

It was at this moment he felt an odd… pop, he decided on. It felt like a pop, like something had slid into place perfectly. The demon let him pull away afterward, staring at him with amusement as Tom stumbled back. “Wha-what did you do!?” He demanded.

The demon chuckled. “I made you immortal. Like you wanted. If you ever die, it’ll be very easy for me to bring you back.”

Tom’s eyes widened, and his heart skipped a beat. “You… you actually made me immortal? For real?” A nod was all he got in return. The demon looked around, face cool for a moment, before suddenly breaking out into a large grin. Tom nearly choked, startled at the sudden difference as the demon now appeared friendly instead of distant and powerful.

“So! What year is it?” He nearly chirped, his voice somehow many octaves above what it had been before. He was clearly eagerly waiting for Tom’s response.

“Er… nineteen forty-four,” he answered hesitantly, raising an eyebrow. Why did he even need to know the date? Wasn’t he going to be leaving soon? Tom was pretty sure most demons don’t stick around for long.

“Nineteen forty-four, huh…” he glanced down, “definitely gonna need to change this.” He snapped his fingers, and all of a sudden was dressed in something very different. Tom’s eyebrows furrowed. This was unlike anything he’d really seen. Sure, some of these clothes he’d noticed in some of the newer shops, but he’d never actually seen anyone wearing such things.

The demon was now wearing a… hoodie, Tom thought it was called. A grey hoodie with tight jeans, and calf high black army type boots. This was quite unusual. The demon apparently noticed Tom’s look. “Hmm, yeah this is bit more two-thousands and not the forties, but fuck it. I like this better.”

Two…. thousands? In about sixty years,  _ this _ is what people wore? Tom glanced up at the demon's face, noticing the glasses he was wearing. He had a thick, stylish pair of glasses sitting precariously low on the bridge of his nose.

Abruptly, the demon seemed to disappear, only for arms to wrap around his shoulders and a head to lay on one of them. Tom jumped slightly, leaning away to look back at the demon behind him. “So…. where are we going now?”

“ _ We _ ?” He parroted, “Aren’t you going to leave?”

He got a pout in return, and the demon hugged him closer, rubbing his head against him in a nuzzle. “Awwww, you want me to leave already? But I’ve only just made you immortal!”

“Yeah, that’s great, but why does that mean you have to stay?”

The demon giggled. “Silly, there is only one way to become truly immortal in this universe. Most demons aren’t actually immortal. Sure, they’re hard as balls to kill, but they’re not really immortal. I’m actually one of the very few beings that is truly immortal. To share that immortality with you, I needed to bond our souls together. Essentially, you’re immortal as long as I am near you!”

“Oh…” Tom groaned, dragging one of his hands down his face in irritation. Of course that’s the case. Why did he ever expect this to be easy? After another sigh, Tom asked the question that had been nagging at him for a while. “What sacrifice do you want in return, anyway?”

“Sacrifice?” The demon blinked owlishly. “Oh, that thing! Look, I haven’t been summoned in centuries, the only thing I’m asking of you is to let me  _ stay _ . Besides, it’s not like I need anything else.”

“Right. Of course. I don’t know how you’re going to be able to follow me everywhere considering the places I go, but at the very least I need something to call you,” He gritted out, not really angry since he  _ had _ achieved what he wanted but still very annoyed.

“A name? Oh, there’s this one I’ve always held a fondness for! Harry. My name is Harry,” The demon, Harry, told him excitedly, squeezing him tighter. Harry jumped up suddenly, wrapping his legs around Tom’s waist to get high enough to set his head on top of Tom’s head.

He stumbled from the abrupt weight of the demon, just managing to catch his balance before he fell. Tom grumbled, but didn’t say anything. As much as the demon was annoying, he was still a demon, and Tom did  _ not _ want to piss him off. Still, why did the demon he summoned have to be so touchy-feely?

Simply to help him keep balance, he grabbed Harry’s thighs, using them to keep the demon up and from moving around so much. It was time to leave the room. Abraxas was probably going to die of a heart attack once he knew who Harry was. Tom smirked in amusement at the thought, and headed for the door.


	2. Chapter 2

“Hey, can I call you my pet?” Tom questioned as he walked through the hallway, Harry still firmly on his back. Abraxas had apparently retreated as far away as he could from the ritual room considering how long it was taking to find him.

“Why would you want to do that?” The demon asked in return, running his fingers through Tom’s hair. Harry seemed to like playing with it, though Tom was unsure why. He was glad Harry wasn’t offended by his question, since he had been uncertain about asking it.

“Just thought it’d be funny if I could refer to you as my pet demon, and freak everyone out,” Tom shrugged. That  _ was _ true, but it wasn’t the only reason why. It would give him the biggest power rush of the century to be able to call a demon his pet, and Tom desperately wanted it.

“Eh, s’pose that’s alright, so long as you don’t get any actual delusions over it.” Harry told him dismissively, as if he didn’t really care about it. “Though it is kinda kinky, isn’t it?” Harry leaned down to purr into his ear, squeezing his waist with his legs.

Tom almost squeaked. “That was not my intention!” He hurried to clarify, face attempting to turn red. He didn’t let it, forcibly cooling himself through sheer willpower.

The demon chuckled, tugging lightly at the hair near his ears. “I know.” Harry placed his hands on his shoulders and leaned far back, almost unbalancing them. “So what’re we doing, anyway?”

He stumbled a little at the difference in weight, huffing since it was harder to carry Harry like this. “I’m trying to find Abraxas Malfoy. He’s the son of the manor owner. I need him to activate the floo gates to allow me to return to my place of residence. And I also want to scare him using you. He’s terrified of the idea of demons.”

Giggling broke out behind him, the idea of a terrified teenager clearly amusing to Harry. Tom rolled his eyes, hiking Harry’s thighs up along his hips to startle him. Harry yelped, and quickly clung onto Tom's back again from where he’d almost fallen. “No fair!” He whined, poking at Tom’s cheek.

Snorting, Tom began looking around again. Minutes passed in silence as his search continued. Finally, after another ten minutes, Tom found Abraxas pacing nervously in the dining room. “Abraxas,” He announced his presence loudly, smirking as the Malfoy screeched in alarm and whipped around to stare at him.

“M-my Lord! Ha-have you, uh… succeeded?” He stuttered nervously. Tom knew when he spotted Harry because he blinked rapidly in shock and a look of confusion came over him. “Er… who’s this, my Lord?”

“This is Harry. My new pet demon,” he told him confidently, keeping his face blank as if this was common information and absolutely not worth a reaction. It’d make Abraxas so much more embarrassed when he was done freaking out.

And freak out he did. “W-WHAT!?” Abraxas screamed, eye widening comically as he fell backwards and landed on his back. He propped himself up with his elbows and quickly shuffled backwards in panic.

Tom had to fight  _ hard _ to keep his amusement hidden, instead raising an eyebrow at his ‘friend’s’ display. Harry, however, had no such limitations and howled with laughter, pointing rudely at Abraxas to make him feel even worse.

“T-that’s hilarious,” Harry snickered, his voice breathy as he struggled to talk through his laughter. “I could show him my demon face, y’know, and scare him even more.”

“Hmm, I don’t need him so scared he passes out, but I am curious about this ‘demon face’ of yours. Show me later on and I might let you use it on some helpless muggles.”

“I’m not sure if you could handle my demon face, and I don’t wanna break you,” he poked at Tom’s cheek again before shrugging, “but if you’re really sure, I guess I could. Muggles are what magicals call those without magic, right?” Harry gave a low chuckle, “I haven’t had some fun with one in a while, so that’d be nice.”

Sometime in between their small talk, Abraxas had managed to somewhat recover. He was still clearly shaken, and very nervous and pale, but he was at least capable of standing again. Tom eyed him, stifling a grin. His face was struggling between paling from terror and flushing with embarrassment, exactly as Tom had intended.

“I… I apologize, my Lord. I was not able to control myself,” Abraxas bowed shallowly and stiffly, keeping his eyes firmly on the demon. Tom would’ve liked demanding a deeper bow, he always liked proof he was better than others, but Abraxas was his somewhat friend. As much as he hated it, Tom knew socializing was necessary to a human being, and that was the only reason he allowed a few people to get closer to him than the rest.

“Abraxas, I wish to return to my place of residence. Open the floo gates, if you would?” It was phrased almost like a question, but both of them knew it wasn’t. The Malfoy was eager to get the demon out anyway, and as such obeyed without the slightest hint of hesitation. Normally, he’d at least engage in banter before obeying a command.

Maybe having a demon around wouldn’t be so bad, Tom mused, if everyone reacted like this. But that would require letting everyone know there was a demon following him, and Tom definitely didn’t want that. At least, not before he was ready to completely assume the title of a Dark Lord.

He was still merely a school boy to be taken for granted. Maybe not as insignificant as he once was, but a school boy all the same. Tom refused to jeopardize his future before it even began. After all, he wanted to take the most political route possible, and that just wasn’t going to happen if people considered him one of the darkest individuals to exist.

And he had no doubt that they would. He’d been the one to summon the demon in the first place after all. It was magic so dark that it was called  _ black,  _ and Tom was confident that he was the first human to attempt black magic in at least a century or more. There was simply no way he’d accomplish his goals if people knew Harry was a demon.

Still, referring to Harry as a demon would give him a bit of a protection since people would be even more terrified to attack or challenge him if he had a demon on his side. Maybe he could convince them Harry was simply called a demon because of how he fought and acted? Perhaps, but first he actually needed to know those things before he could determine the outcome of it. It was an idea he filed away for later.

During his contemplation they had arrived at the floo room. Abraxas quickly stepped forward and touched something on the mantle of the fireplace, and then moved far out of the way. In fact, after a second's hesitation, Abraxas bolted out of the room altogether. Tom raised a brief disbelieving eyebrow, having never seen his friend act like this before, but shrugged. It didn’t really matter. Tom would just have to get him used to it.

“Down,” Tom said, patting at Harry’s thigh. The demon gave a high whine, clinging to him tighter. Harry didn’t say anything, but it was pretty obvious he was asking why. “I can’t floo with you on my back. And I can’t have you hanging on to me in public, either. Why  _ are _ you on my back, anyway? Pretty sure that’s not a demon thing.”

Harry huffed, grumbling quietly, but got off after Tom forcefully unwrapped his legs from his waist. “It’s not a demon thing,” he confirmed, a slight blush on his cheeks as he looked away. “I’m just… unique. Unlike most demons, before I became ‘The Master’... I was just human. And after centuries of no one being near me, I guess I’m a little needy for contact.”

Tom sighed, running his hand through his hair as he absently tucked that information away. “It’s fine. I don’t mind it. I just can’t have you doing that too much in public. It would draw too much attention.”

The demon nodded, and a small happy grin came over him. He hugged Tom’s arm to his chest, nuzzling his head against him. Tom wasn’t sure, but he swore he heard a “thank you,” muttered very quietly. He swallowed, shifting uncomfortably. He was definitely not used to this. People didn’t tend to be affectionate with him.

His hand hovered in the air for a second before he patted Harry’s shoulder. “C’mon. I can take you with me when I floo if you stay close.” Harry somehow pressed even closer to him.

The floo was relatively nearby, so Tom only had to stumble a few feet over to reach it. He grabbed a pinch of the floo dust, and made sure to wrap an arm around Harry’s waist. “Leaky Cauldron!” Tom shouted, throwing the pinch of dust into the bright orange flames.

Once they quickly turned green, Tom brought them forward, stepping into the flames. He then stepped again, smoothly emerging on the other side with only the barest hints of ash covering him. He quickly dusted himself off, doing the same to Harry since he knew the demon probably wouldn’t care to do it himself.

Tom put a little distance between them now, but didn’t complain when Harry grabbed onto his sleeve. He led him out of the Cauldron, and down the street. His orphanage was actually surprisingly close to this place, only a street or two away. It had always been a source of annoyance for him since now he knew that he’d somehow managed to miss the Leaky Cauldron for eleven years of his life despite traveling this road often.

“Harry?” He murmured lowly, waiting until he was sure the demon was paying attention to him. “I live at an orphanage currently. It’s full of the worst kinds of muggles, and I must ask that you do not do anything overly… demon-like. They’re terrified of me, but some of them do have balls, and I cannot use my magic against them yet.”

A shark-like grin overtook Harry’s face. “But I can.” Tom glanced at him, giving a questioning hum. “I’m a demon, which means that wizards can’t track my magic, or powers. I could do it for you.”

He paused for a moment, blinking at the realization. “Huh. Yeah, I guess you could, couldn’t you?” He shook his head though. “Maybe, but you still can’t kill them. I’m very close to leaving that place for good, I don’t want to end up as a murder suspect.”

“Why would they suspect you?” Harry tilts his head, his confusion clear. “Wouldn’t they suspect me, since I’d be the actual killer? That’s how it works, right? Or are muggles dumber than I thought?”

Tom couldn’t quite keep in his chuckle. “Like I said, they’re terrified of me. Out of everyone at the orphanage, the first person they’d suspect is me. Even if they didn’t, and instead caught you as the killer, it’d be the same result regardless. If you’re a known killer, or on the run, it would create the exact same problems for me since you’re always going to be around me.”

The demon slowly nodded, face considering as he absorbed the problem. “Hmm. I suppose that makes sense. Kinda annoying though. I really wanted to kill some humans…” he pouted, laying his head on Tom’s shoulder.

“I’m not saying you can’t kill  _ anyone _ ,” Tom clarified, “Just not anyone that can be traced back to us. Unfortunately, that includes pretty much everyone at the orphanage.”

Harry seemed to pause for a moment, “What if… what if we stage a disappearance? We could make it seem like they just left on their own, like they ran away. We could get rid of the one you dislike the most, if you want.”

He side-eyed him, contemplating. “You really wanna kill someone, don’t you? I suppose we could, but not for a little while. If you really want to do this, all things considered, then we’re gonna have to be careful about it.”

“I’m a demon, Tom. Most of us enjoy watching things suffer. I wasn’t like this at first, but after being alive for so long, your morals kind of vanish. That’s why all demons are so uncaring. By now, watching things be tortured is quite fun. You never know how a human might react to it, and that element of mystery is something all immortals look for. When you live for as long as us, you know everything, so things that surprise us or excite us or confuse us are things we desperately search for. No one can guess what someone would do under torture, and that’s what makes it so… interesting.”

“I’ve… never thought of it like that,” Tom admitted. “That life sounds so… boring. Is immortality really like that?” Harry gave a solemn nod.

“That’s why I never understood man's obsession with living forever. It’s really not fun after enough time.”

“Maybe… maybe I don’t want to live forever,” He began, barely believing he was saying it. After so long, and so much work, he didn’t want it? Well, not quite, he supposed. It was still worth it, but for a very different reason than he’d intended. “Maybe instead… I just wanted to live for as long as I wanted. I didn’t want my life to end before I’d done all I wanted, and all I had planned. Maybe I’m not scared of dying. Maybe… maybe I’m just scared of dying before I’m ready.”

“That sounds much better, Tom, it really does. I wish  _ I _ had that choice…”

A sigh, heavier than any he’d had before, escaped him. “I don’t even know why I’m telling you this. I never talk to anyone, especially about things so personal. You might be a demon, but I still just met you. It’s kind of hard to believe I’m so willing to spill everything to you.” He glanced briefly at Harry, feeling a spike of suspicion, before willing it away. Even if Harry  _ was _ doing something to make him talk, he felt better than he had in years, so he wouldn’t be angry about it.

The demon smiled at him, slipping closer to wrap his arm further around Tom’s arm instead of just holding it. “I understand. I think it’s because you’re associating me with something much closer to you than anything else. Because of that, you’re more willing to talk about it to me. I don’t think it would have been the same if we had just met on the streets.”

“Yeah… you’re probably right,” Tom nodded firmly, as if assuring himself that that was what it was. “You better not tell anyone about it though. I am protective enough about my secrets that I will  _ fight _ you if you let them go, regardless of the fact you’re a demon.” He made sure his smile was teasing, just in case Harry was offended by the very serious sentence.

Harry laughed, and suddenly the tense atmosphere broke. “Of course, Tom.”


	3. Chapter 3

They were silent for the rest of the walk, both of them content to not talk. Harry had migrated to clutching his waist with his arms, but now that they had arrived, Tom pushed him back to just holding onto his sleeve. He didn’t mind the affection, even if it was a bit weird for him being so unused to it. Honestly, he mostly felt flattered by it. A major demon showing him affection? That was a huge compliment and it made Tom feel like he was worth a lot more than he had before. He typically didn’t like such things, but with Harry it was… alright. Still, he didn’t want to draw any more attention than he already had, and someone clinging onto another person definitely drew attention.

It was too late to get by quietly considering his early years, but he didn’t want to deal with even more annoying muggles. Especially not only a few months away from leaving for good. He just wanted an easy few months until he left for his final year at Hogwarts, and never had to come back here again.

“We’re here,” he told Harry, though the demon had probably already noticed due to the way Tom had stiffened. He couldn’t help it. Even after all this time, the Orphanage still got on his nerves in a way nothing else could, not even the knowledge of his horrible family.

They stopped a little ways away, none of the orphans out and about having noticed them yet. Harry tilted his head consideringly. “Is there a specific one we should get rid of?” He asked quietly, glancing at him.

Tom sighed. Of course Harry was still on that. “Billy Stubbs,” he answered after a moment's pause. He’d always had something against that boy. Billy had been one of his main bully’s, even long after Tom had strung his rabbit up to die out of spite. Even now, Billy wasn’t against getting up in his face and threatening him. He hasn’t done more than push him around in the last few years though, simply out of fear because of all Tom had done during those years. Still, Billy was the one person he truly held a grudge against at the Orphanage, aside from the matrons who he couldn’t risk getting rid of.

“He should have left years ago considering he’s of age, but he’s had nowhere to go. The matrons only let him stay because he does a lot of manual labor for them. Billy is really the only person here I have an actual reason to torture aside from just being a disgusting muggle.” He then looked at Harry sternly. “But do remember we can’t do it for at least a few weeks.”

The demon nodded understandingly, but a flash of eagerness made it clear he was looking forward to it. “I’ll make sure to think up lots of things to do to him,” Harry murmured quietly, eyes lit up with joy.

For the first time since they’d met an hour ago, Tom felt a shiver of genuine fear go down his spine. Harry truly was terrifying. Somehow, in some way, it appealed to Tom. He glanced over at Harry in a new light, a small smile taking over his usual uncaring mask.

He looked away, slightly embarrassed, when Harry caught him. The demon giggled, nudging his shoulder against Tom’s. Harry’s hand slid down to squeeze at his own, before returning to his sleeve, and pulling him forward. He moved after a moment’s hesitation, taking the lead to show Harry to his room.

The teens and children around them quickly froze as they saw Tom, and a silence took over. Most of them were probably in the yard in the back, but enough were here that the silence was noticeable from the chatter of before. It was clear they were very confused, glancing from Tom to Harry, and then back again.

Billy, the teen they’d been discussing earlier, luckily wasn’t here. Tom grimaced, shoulders tensing as he went for the door. If Billy wasn’t here, then he was likely waiting inside for him. Billy had this annoying habit of being extra rude to Tom whenever he came back from an outing, simply because he felt jealous he had nowhere to go himself.

It was quite annoying, but there wasn’t really much Tom could do about it. The boy wasn’t smart enough to react to threats, and would actually be more likely to get angry and attack. And besides, Tom didn’t like making false threats since he knew that it would take away his credibility heavily if they ever found out he wouldn’t follow through. While he usually just made real threats, he couldn’t in the muggle world because he was still underage and couldn’t use magic yet to back him up.

Sighing, Tom pushed open the door to Wool’s Orphanage. Unlike what he’d expected, it appeared most of the Orphanage was waiting around inside instead of in the back. His brows furrowed briefly before he caught sight of Billy lounging on the stairs with a smirk, and he rolled his eyes. Of course that’s what was going on.

He seemed to have been preparing for something different than what he usually does. How… _annoying_. A low growl built up in his throat, and he glared at Billy. This was a tactic he’d never dare to use in front of pure bloods, but muggles were another story. Muggles always seemed scared of those who acted almost like an animal, which was exactly why Tom used this tactic around here.

The children and teens watching flinched, some of them even losing nerve altogether and leaving the room. Billy started to sweat, but swallowed and gathered his bravado, trying to pretend like nothing was wrong. His eyes drifted over to Harry, lighting up, and Tom instantly knew the path he was going to go down. He just hoped Harry wouldn’t get angry enough to ignore what he said earlier.

“Oh, who’s this? Y’know, you shouldn’t hang around this guy. He’s a freak. Like, a complete and utter freak. You wouldn’t want to be around him unless… you wanna be a freak too?” Billy looked beyond smug as he said it, convinced his words would cause Harry to turn tail and run.

The demon tensed next to him and his face darkened. “Tom… can I kill him? Right now? Because if something doesn’t stop me, he’s dead.” Tom paled, and turned towards him, raising a shaking hand to pat down Harry’s hair. Of course, it was all for show. If they saw the fearless, _monstrous_ , Tom Riddle was terrified of Harry being angry… they might just leave him alone for the rest of their stay. It was worth a shot.

“N-no. Ha-Harry, you know you c-can’t ki… _kill_ anyone. Please just… calm down…” The muggles had frozen, staring with wide eyes at the scene Tom was making. He brought Harry into his arms, running his hands up and down his back as if he was attempting to comfort him. He then turned a glare at Billy. “If you want to live, I suggest you run. Harry’s a bit of a… _demon_. When he’s angry.”

Harry was clearly confused, his anger mostly sizzled out as he glanced up at him. Tom squeezed his arms around him, giving a glance and a smirk back for just a brief moment. A sly grin crept up the demon's face, telling Tom he had realized what he was doing.

To drive home the point, Harry turned his face towards the bully, a snarl clear as day, and his eyes flashing a fierce fiery red. Billy _screamed_ , stumbling away before he got both his feet under him and bolted out of the Orphanage altogether. Tom eyed the open door, wondering if he’d ever come back. It’d throw a bit of a wrench in their plans to kill him if they’d just scared him off for good.

Hopefully, being the idiot he was, Billy would come back. Tom really did want to hurt him, and Harry would be very disappointed if the one person they could reasonably torture anytime soon suddenly vanished. Billy was stupid, however, so maybe he would get over it and return once he calmed down.

The demon pouted, seemingly reaching the same conclusion as Tom. He patted his back once in real comfort, and then pulled away to lead Harry past the silent, scared muggles. No one made any moves, watching both of them intently, but Harry now had a lot more fear directed at him.

Tom didn’t have to use legilimency to know what they were thinking, allowing himself to snort quietly once he was out of hearing range. Harry was silent, but a quick look at him told Tom he was struggling to keep in his laughter. He immediately sped up, quickly reaching his room, the smallest in the Orphanage, and shoving Harry inside.

“Can you put up a silencing charm?” Tom hissed quietly, knowing that if any Muggles heard the question they would barge in with accusations of ‘devils’ and ‘demons’ and ‘witchery’. Which, Tom absently realized, wasn’t as wrong as it had been ten years ago, back when he truly had no idea what this power was that he could control.

Harry nodded, eyes sparkling as he waved a shaky hand. As soon as Tom felt the ward come into existence around his room, the demon fell to the floor, screeching with laughter and rolling around. He raised an eyebrow at the display, carefully stepping around him to sit elegantly on his bed, crossing his legs.

“Tha-that was so much fun!” Harry gasped, still giggling madly. He turned around onto his stomach, crawling closer until he could leverage himself up using the bedpost.

“Really? Because I thought you were genuinely angry there.” Tom tilted his head slightly, not helping the demon as he finally stood up and plopped down onto his bed. Harry rolled over until he was on his back, arms reaching up to prop his head up.

“Oh, I was angry,” Harry nodded sagely, “but the last bit was fun enough that I couldn’t help myself. I don’t really like focusing on things that make me mad, y’know, ‘cause then life just isn’t fun, and that’s not something I want. Say,” Harry turned onto his side, an elbow digging into the bedding to hold his head up. “Why’d you want those mortals scared of me, anyway?”

“They’re stupid. If they know you’re around me, they would bug you non-stop. Frankly, I don’t know your temper, or how good you can control it, so I figured I’d just cut it off before anything happened. This way, with them terrified of you, they’ll be much less inclined to piss you off.”

Harry hummed, a mischievous grin spreading across his face. “Yeah, that’s probably a good move. I’m quite notorious in the Underworld for my temper, you see. I’ll do my best to not react to it though, if only for you.”

Tom paused for a moment. “Thank you,” He said, for lack of anything else.

A giggle, and then Tom was suddenly shoved over onto his side, Harry coming up to wrap himself around him, placing his head on his chest. “You’re welcome.”

His arms hovered in the air for a moment of uncertainty, then slowly lowered until one was on Harry’s shoulder. Tom sighed heavily, glanced out at the still bright day, and then settled down to have a nap with the demon on top of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took a little longer than anticipated, but at least it’s here lol.

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve never actually tried to write something from Voldemort’s perspective, but this was surprisingly fun and refreshing to write.
> 
> ALSO, I’ve got literally no idea where to take this. Only a few things are planned out here and there, so on that note-
> 
> SUGGESTIONS ARE MUCH WELCOME!!


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